Brunet will soon take over as the first woman to conduct the philharmonic and only its fifth music director in 57 years. The native of Paris, France says from a young age, she felt the pull of a career in music.
"From the time I was a teenager, I have been passionate about music, and my joy and goal in life is to share that passion with others."Mélisse Brunet, newly-selected Lexington Philharmonic conductor
But Brunet’s path to the podium in Lexington was a serendipitous one.
She was not originally a candidate for the position, and was instead invited to guest conduct while the philharmonic searched for a new leader. But her popularity and immediate bond with the musicians prompted the search committee to shift their focus to Brunet for the position.
"From the first rehearsal until the concert, everything clicked and grew exponentially between the musicians and myself," Brunet explains in an enthusiastic introduction video.
And after watching her interact with the performers, things began falling into place quickly.
Now, the Herald Leader reports Brunet is set to conduct during the 2022-23 season. The following season will be the first planned under her direction.
Read more from her online biography:
A native of Paris, Brunet began her studies on the cello, and also learned to play the trumpet, French horn and piano. She holds six diplomas from the Paris Conservatory (Analysis, Harmony, Counterpoint, Renaissance Counterpoint, Orchestration, and a Masters in Orchestral Conducting), a Bachelor in Music from the Université la Sorbonne, a Professional Studies diploma from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and a Doctorate in conducting from the University of Michigan. Aside from Pierre Boulez, her mentors have included Kenneth Kiesler, Lawrence Loh, Carl Topilow, Zsolt Nagy, and Joel Smirnoff. Brunet also took part in international workshops where she studied with Marin Alsop, Gustav Meier, David Stern, Peter Eötvös, and Jorge Mester. She has studied French, English, German, and Italian lyric diction, and speaks English, French, Italian, Chinese, Hebrew, and German.
